Claws Season 3 Episode 8 Review: What Is Happening to America
Dale McGarrigle
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Desna is starting to lose it.
She saw the blood that she had on her hands on Claws Season 3 Episode 8.
Unfortunately, in her case, that was both metaphysical and physical blood.
Will Desna be able to come back from this despair?
There was a lot of that going around by the end of this episode.
This episode picked up right after The Professor had sliced Arlene's throat at the end of Claws Season 3 Episode 7.
Mac and Melba's side hustle of having Governor Patel launder his bribe money through the casino had come back to bite them in the ass.
Desna was just collateral damage in this case, suffering guilt by association.
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Then The Professor gave them an ultimatum: Pay $3 million to the triad in 24 hours or die.
That left Desna facing two problems: how to raise $3 million and how to keep Arlene's death from Quiet Ann, so Ann wouldn't get herself killed doing something stupid in revenge.
Desna's first move was to tell Roller and Polly about Arlene's fate and about the fundraising challenge she was facing.
Ann instinctively knew that something was wrong with Arlene and couldn't let go of that thought, despite reassurances from others.
And heartbreakingly this came after their quickie marriage earlier that day, for the baby.
Desna tried to buy herself some time by texting Ann from Arlene's phone, a text that rang false to Ann.
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Then Ann dozed and had a frightening nightmare, with Arlene falling away from her.
She called Desna with her fears. Desna tried to reassure and get her to stay at the motel, but Ann was too certain that Arlene was in trouble.
Ann became more confused when Dean mentioned that he had seen Arlene at the casino earlier after Desna had told her she hadn't saw Arlene.
Next, she went to Arlene's captain, who told her that Ann had suddenly been given an undercover assignment.
It turned out that the captain was working for The Professor and must be the spy who was leaking intel to the triad.
So Desna was getting help that she didn't even know about keeping Ann in the dark.
When Ann caught up to Desna, at least Desna did one smart thing, pinning Arlene's murder on Mac, since he couldn't defend himself any longer.
Maybe that will keep Ann off the triad's radar for a while. Maybe.
Ann wasn't the only woman on Desna's crew in trouble.
Sure, it was a hoot to watch Bryce, EJ, Virginia, and especially Jenn brawl with white supremacists at Bryce's aborted book signing on Claws Season 3 Episode 7.
But when Bryce and Jenn discovered the phrase "Race Traitor" scrawled on their van, it was evident that their feud with the Klan (I call it like it is) wasn't over.
The Neo-Nazis marched on Uncle Daddy's rehab center, wearing polos, khakis and red hats and armed with torches.
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But there were very fine people on both sides if the President is to be believed.
Bryce almost got lynched for preaching diversity. It was telling that the cop who broke up the "demonstration" offered the supremacist leader Chad a ride home.
After learning that Chad fittingly lived on a plantation and had a very pricey collection of Confederate memorabilia, Desna came up with a way to kill two birds with one stone.
She and her crew would strike back to the Neo-Nazis by stealing enough of Chad's memorabilia to pay off the triad.
The respectable-looking white folk -- Clay, Roller, and Melba -- knocked on Chad's door, pretending to be the neighborhood watch concerned about undesirables. Didn't Roller rock that bow tie and those specs?
While they spewed hate with Chad over sweet tea out front, Desna, Jenn, Bryce, and Virginia snuck in the back, searching for valuables.
It went as well as any of Desna's heists do, with Virginia knocking out a shotgun-toting maid with a swastika trophy.
But Mac, the getaway driver, got shot and killed by Chad. That's bound to make Melba even more unstable the rest of the way.
Who will she blame more for Mac's death, Desna or the triad? No wonder The Professor wants Desna to take her out.
I've always felt Mac was the lesser of the two evils in that couple. He honestly cared for Dean, and I wonder how Mac's death is going to affect Dean.
Dean was already missing Virginia. Why else would he have recruited a Virginia-lookalike hooker to replace the social aspects of their relationship (but surprisingly not the sexual ones)?
In addition, now that The Professor knows Dean is Desna's brother, Dean is in heightened danger, even if he has no clue about it.
Finally, in this episode directed by Carrie Preston, Polly and Joe admitted they are in love with each other.
Polly even helped him murder Patel, who was is in damn good shape for a politician. That's another loose end that's been taken care of.
Now, torn between two worlds, where do Polly and Joe come down? Does their allegiances lie with Desna, Melba, or the triad? Or do they just make a run for it?
What's next for Desna? How does she get out of this?
It was sad watching her stagger bloodstained through the casino to the strains of "Bad Company." With all the heartbeat sounds throughout, I was afraid she was going to have a heart attack.
She wants to blame herself for everything that's happened to her girls. Some of it is definitely on her trying to get what she considers to be her fair share, but for much of it, they are victims of circumstance.
With the season quickly coming to a close, watch Claws online.
Do you feel badly for Mac or Melba?
How can Polly come back?
What will Ann do now she knows Arlene is dead?
Comment below.
Dale McGarrigle is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on X.
